


Dirty Hands

by lizzicleromance



Category: My Chemical Romance
Genre: Cigarettes, Cute, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Frerard, Kidfic, M/M, Neighbors, Plants, Sweet, cactus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-04
Updated: 2014-08-11
Packaged: 2018-01-07 10:05:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1118597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lizzicleromance/pseuds/lizzicleromance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frank was having a bad day. Gerard just so happened to be in the right place, to show up at just the right time to help change that and make it one of the best days that Frank has had in quite awhile.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A simple smile can change everything...

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by this [picture](https://scontent-b-dfw.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/q85/1535532_792900444070072_1511484812_n.jpg). 
> 
> This first chapter was inspired by something that my wonderful boyfriend did one afternoon, the above photo being what inspired it all. I hope you enjoy! <3

Frank Iero was having a bad day.

His car wouldn’t start, and he was on his last warning with his boss about not showing up to work on time. It wasn’t his fault that he had insomnia and rarely ever got any sleep. Although his body was physically exhausted from being on his feet all day, he just couldn’t stop his busy mind from stilling after working long shifts every day, therefore, he would lie awake at night for hours on end, waiting for sleep that wouldn’t come until the wee hours of the morning.

So on this particular morning, as he puffs angrily away on the last cigarette in his pack, he is in the parking lot of the apartment building that he lives in, formulating a game plan that will get him to work on time. He’s leaning up against his car, which still has the hood open as if the answer to his car woes would miraculously straighten out by having it open, and has already texted his boss to let her know that he would be running late due to car troubles. After trying three times, Frank is eagerly awaiting his best friend, Bob, to call him back. Bob was usually never awake around this ungodly hour of 8AM, but that didn’t stop him from trying to call him. Again.

So as the phone once again goes to Bob’s voicemail, Frank throws his cigarette angrily to the ground, and leans helplessly back against his car. The damn thing isn’t even more than five years old, yet it’s already giving him problems. He is three- count them, three, car notes away from having his silver Chevy Cobalt paid off; why, of all the times, must it choose to be a bitch and not start up now?

He ran a frustrated hand through his hair, and buried his head in his hands. He stayed like that for what feels like hours, though in reality, it couldn’t have been more than a minute or two. Frank didn’t bother looking up, or retreating from this little sanctuary, until he heard a miraculous voice break the silence around him.

“Hey man, you need a hand?”

Frank lifted his head quickly to see an absolute angel of a man, for lack of a better word. He stood there, with his mouth hanging slightly open, positively gawping at him. He blinked a few times, before the kind gentleman placed a gentle hand on Frank’s slumped shoulder.

“Are you okay?”

After several molasses-slow seconds, he suddenly snapped back to reality. Frank couldn't help let out an embarrassed laugh as he realized that he had spaced out because of this ~~gorgeous~~ man that was expressing concern for him, and gave a small smile at the pale, raven-haired wonder in front of him.

“Erm- yeah. Hi, sorry about that,” Frank spoke then, suddenly finding his voice as he stood up straight. “Damn thing won’t start, I don’t know what’s wrong with it.”

The raven-haired man gave a slight nod, seemingly understanding straightaway what was causing his neighbor to be so distressed. “Mind if I take a look?” He asked, to which Frank’s eyes widened.

“Uh... yeah, of course. Go right ahead,” Frank replied, un-eloquently, as he followed the kind stranger over to the hood of the car, and watched with great interest as the gentleman began to fiddle with random things under the hood of his car.

“Do you have a napkin or anything in your car that I could use?” The stranger asked, to which Frank immediately nodded.

As a bachelor, he rarely ever cooked for himself. Most of his meals came from fast food joints, and now, all of those trips to Taco Bell and McDonalds turned out to do him some good. He had napkins from those places in his car for days.

“Here,” Frank murmured, as he went to hand several napkins to the ~~hot~~ kind stranger. His heart literally stopped, and his eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets, as he returned to the stranger, and noticed that he was quite literally the most mouth-watering thing his green eyes had ever seen. If Frank didn’t know any better, he would say that he was propped up like this on purpose. The stranger’s arms were reached up, extending out to the open hood as he awaited Frank to come back with that napkin. The thin-fitting t-shirt rode up and revealed just a small patch of porcelain skin underneath; _teasing_ Frank and quite literally making his mouth water.

Frank quickly realized that he was ogling him, and placed the napkin in his now out-stretched hand. He accepted it graciously, before beginning to fumble with random parts of the car under the hood.

“Um, thanks a lot, really, for you know, helping me out like this.”

The stranger glanced up from examining the inner mechanics of Frank’s car, and flashed him a ~~gorgeous~~ sincere smile. “No worries! You looked like you needed a hand, and I was more than happy to lend my services,” he replied, his smile never faltering once. “I’m Gerard, by the way.”

Frank watched as the ~~mind-blowingly hot~~ gentleman named Gerard extended his hand out for him to shake, his face lighting up as he realized that this previously unknown man now had a name.

“It’s great to meet you, Gerard. I’m Frank.”

He slipped his tattooed hand casually into the extended palm of Gerard’s, grinning like a fucking idiot as he did so. He pulled away as soon as he realized how ridiculously dopey his smile must have looked, and did his best to play it cool.

“Uh... so, thanks again, Gerard,” Frank muttered, trying to maintain a casual demeanor. “Do you live in this complex, or...?”

Gerard glanced back up at him then, nodding his head. “Yeah, I live in the Y building,” he replied, flashing Frank another ~~breath-taking~~ smile. “What about you?”

Frank nodded. “Yeah, I’m in the X building, right there,” he murmured, pointing at the complex directly next to Gerard’s building.

“Well, nice to meet you, neighbor,” Gerard replied cheerfully, as he wiped his now dirty hands on one of the napkins Frank had given to him. “I think I know what’s wrong, I’ll be back in just a second.”

With those words, Gerard quickly excused himself, before jogging over to the Y building. Frank watched as he climbed the stairs that led up to the second floor. He took this time to literally let out the breath he didn’t even realize he was holding, grinning to himself as he realized that there were still kind people in the world that were willing to help others out that were in need. Even though he is a guy, and it’s some sort of rule, or stereotype, that all guys are required to know everything about cars, Frank Iero is the exception to this rule. He is completely ignorant of any and all car knowledge, and though he was mentally kicking himself because that lack of knowledge has made him undoubtedly late for work, it did introduce him to one of his neighbors... a ridiculously gorgeous neighbor, to be exact.

A ridiculously gorgeous neighbor, who was now making his way back toward him, with a jug of water, and two bottles of what could only be car products in his hands.

“I think I have just the thing to brighten your day,” Gerard said as he returned back to Frank and his car; that bright, vibrant smile of his still in place as he addressed his neighbor.

“Thank you so much,” Frank replied, sending a grateful smile over in Gerard’s direction. “Really, you must have really important things to be doing, I shouldn’t be taking up your time like this.”

Gerard laughed. “Seriously Frank, it’s no worries. I’m glad to help,” he replied, as he poured the water into a now-uncapped container under the hood. Frank watched curiously, mesmerized at Gerard’s kindness.

“Looks like your car is dangerously low on water,” Gerard informed Frank, pointing to the now-empty gallon jug of water. “Oil, too. When’s the last time you put any in her?”

Frank grimaced, as a guilty look overtook his features. “I... guess it’s been awhile,” he replied, shrugging sheepishly.

Gerard did nothing but continue to smile at his neighbor, as he continued to pour various liquids into various places in Frank’s car. “Hey man, it happens. Just, when it does happen, this sort of thing can happen,” Gerard offered, his voice thoughtful. “If I may offer up some friendly advice, you might want to keep an eye on your oil levels, as well as your water levels. Your car could overheat, you could blow a gasket or-worse, your motor. And that would cost a pretty fucking penny to replace.”

Frank nodded, almost furiously, in agreement. “I really appreciate you taking time out of your day to help me. I seriously feel like an idiot for forgetting to check these sorts of things,” he murmured, blushing slightly.

Gerard popped all of the caps on all of the different components of Frank’s car back into place, and flashed Frank that unwavering smile of his. “I told you, it really is no problem! I just dropped my son off at school, and it's just he and I that live there. The only thing you are interrupting is my free afternoon of doing absolutely nothing but catching up on reality TV,” Gerard replied, as he walked away from the hood, and stood side by side with Frank. “I think that should do it, if you want to give it another try,” Gerard said with an accomplished tone in his voice, still all smiles as he shut the hood and eagerly awaited the result.

Frank nodded, before getting into his car as Gerard instructed, and turned the ignition. Much to his delight, the car rumbled for a brief moment, before the engine purred and the vehicle slowly came to life.

“Holy shit, you’re fucking amazing, Gerard!” Frank exclaimed, literally beaming because his car had started. He got out from the car and flung himself onto his ~~hero~~ ~~savior~~ neighbor; not caring one bit that Gerard was slightly dirty now because he had been fooling around with his car. He was hugging him tightly, if at the very least, to show his gratitude. “I can’t fucking thank you enough for helping me out. Thank you so fucking much!”

Gerard stood there, a bit shocked that Frank had reacted this way, though he allowed his neighbor to cling onto him. He went a step further, and wrapped his arms around Frank as well, patting his back gently.

“No worries whatsoever, Frankie,” Gerard said then, as Frank’s heart did a slight backflip as his ~~ridiculously fucking sexy~~ neighbor not only hugged him back, but called him _Frankie_ , for fuck’s sake. “Remember, I’m in the Y building if you ever need anything.”

Frank nodded, savoring the feeling of being in Gerard’s arms for a few moments longer, before pulling away from him. “Thanks so much, again,” he replied, gifting Gerard with the brightest of smiles. “Maybe now I’ll have some sort of chance of keeping my job. She said as long as I made it in before ten, I wouldn’t be fired. You literally just saved my ass.”

Gerard felt his insides become a bit warm and fuzzy as Frank said those words to him. He felt really good about doing a good deed and helping his neighbor out like this, especially since it really did only take fifteen minutes out of his absolutely boring day off.

“It was a pleasure to help, Frankie,” Gerard replied once again, before taking a few steps back, toward his apartment building. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a date with my DVR. Get to work before you get in any more trouble!”

Frank did as he was told, laughing at Gerard’s last statement about his cable box. “I will, enjoy your TV time. You deserve it,” he stated, grinning as he got into his car. He shut the door, and rolled the window down so that he could still talk to Gerard. “See you around?”

Gerard nodded, as another smile graced his features.

“Absolutely,” he replied, stepping back so Frank could back out of his parking spot. Gerard couldn’t help but notice that his hands were dirty, thanks to Frank’s car, but he didn’t mind. He was just grateful that he could help his neighbor out. He waved one of those mechanic-worthy hands goodbye to Frank, and with that, Frank gave a final wave at Gerard in return, before rolling up his window, and heading off to work.

As he turned on to the main highway, he heard his cell phone begin to go off from its position hidden under empty water bottles and empty packs of cigarettes, and reached over for it so that he could answer it.

Glancing at the caller ID, he laughed out loud, and shook his head as he hit the button to answer the phone.

“Bob, you fucker. It’s about time you called me back,” Frank mused into the phone, though he was all smiles as he continued on with his drive. “You’ll never believe what just happened to me...”

* * *

When Frank returned home later that afternoon, he was even more frustrated than he had been that morning. His good mood of his encounter with his ~~gorgeous~~ neighbor was long forgotten due to his tiring day of countless annoying customers and bitchy members of upper management breathing down his neck.

As he pulled into his apartment complex, he journeyed down a short ways to find a parking spot just out in front of the X building where he lived, and gave a deep sigh as he shut off the engine. He gathered his cell phone and new pack of cigarettes from the now clutter-free center console, and began to walk toward his empty apartment.

He reached the sidewalk that led as a well-landscaped pathway up to his apartment building, pausing for a brief moment to pull a cigarette out of the pack. Lighting it up, he inhaled the sweet nicotine for a moment, shutting his eyes briefly as he let that first inhale overtake his senses.

He ignored the vibration of his cell phone from within its spot in his pocket, knowing it was probably his boss, or perhaps, someone even less appealing like an ex-boyfriend or something. Frank wandered around the sidewalk, pausing for a moment to actually appreciate the landscaped pathway. Bushes and various flower gardens adorned the outside walls of the apartment buildings, with a giant waterfall in the middle of his building and the Y building that was located just to the left of his building.

As Frank continued to enjoy his cigarette, his eyes fell upon a small orange container that was sitting on the ground, in an empty patch of the garden. He knelt down to get a closer look at it, and his eyes widened as he realized that the container was actually a porcelain pumpkin, with a small green plant amidst a bed of soil rested within it. There was a small opening in the pumpkin, with a tiny twig protruding from it that held a note attached to it.

“Please don’t move me, I’m catching some sun!” was what the note read, with a happy face drawn next to it. Frank couldn’t help but giggle as he saw how cute this little addition to the landscaped garden was in front of the Y building. It was obviously left here by a child, as the handwriting suggested, and the thought instantly made his bad mood disappear.

A brilliant idea then flashed in Frank’s mind. He finished up with his cigarette and rushed up the stairs to his apartment, heading straight for his windowsill where a small cactus lay, waiting to be fed some water, which Frank has to admit, he’s rather guilty of paying any sort of attention to the poor little plant. Maybe this is why he can’t have an animal, because if he can’t even take care of his cactus, which needs minimal care, at best, how could he ever care for an actual, living animal?  
Sighing, he pushed that thought aside, and grabbed an index card from his stack of office supplies, as well as a permanent marker, where he wrote a note of his own.

“Me too!” was all he wrote on the note, along with a happy face of his own. He then rushed downstairs with the note, and his small potted plant in hand, and knelt down next to the small little plant in the orange porcelain pumpkin that inspired his next few actions.

Frank scooped up some of the soil next to the plant, digging a small hole that would be big enough for his cactus to fit in. He set the cactus inside of its new home next to the plant, and with a piece of string he had managed to procure before coming outside, tied the note around the cactus.

Once the cactus was safely in the ground with the note securely attached, Frank stepped back to admire his handywork. He literally had to hold back some tears as he thought of how the child that left his plant outside in the pumpkin to ‘catch some sun’ was going to feel when he saw that his plant now had a neighbor. The thought was so overwhelming for him; instantly filling him with positive thoughts that replaced all of the frustration and angst that this day has caused him.

Frank felt light-hearted and free as he took a picture of the two small plants that proudly displayed their little notes about sun-bathing, sighing to himself as he willed himself to go back inside to his empty apartment.

As he began ascending the stairs to his second floor apartment, he paused for a moment to light up another cigarette. He gave a small smile at the sight of his hands being a little dirty. There was still a good bit of dirt and soil on his fingers and under his nails, but he didn’t mind this one bit. He was just happy at the thought of possibly making whoever had placed the little plant down in the garden smile, and he would give his dirty hands a good scrubbing in just a few minutes anyway, after he was finished with his cigarette. He inhaled deeply, hovering over the balcony and peering over at the Y building across from him.

And almost as if on cue, the door straight across from him opened, and out came Gerard; the kind, good-looking neighbor that graciously rescued him and came to him in his time of need this morning when he was having car troubles, with a little boy around the age of four following closely behind him. The little boy’s hair was as jet black as his father’s, and he held what looked like a cup of water in one of his small hands, as his other hand reached to grab a hold of his father’s.

Gerard glanced up and noticed that Frank was outside on the balcony, and gave a small wave as he flashed him that gorgeous smile of his. “Hey, Frankie!” He called out to him, before descending down the stairs with his son.

“Hey Gerard,” Frank called out as he joined Gerard and his son, who was positively beaming as he peered upon the small orange pumpkin with its new cactus companion.

“Daddy! Look!” the little boy with the raven hair exclaimed, jumping up and down with excitement. “My punkin plant has a friend! _Look_!”

Gerard managed to tear his eyes away from Frank for a moment, to look over at what his son was exclaiming about, before an even wider grin broke out onto his attractive face than before as he knelt down beside his son, who was now hugging him tightly.

“Wow, that’s so cool, pal!” Gerard exclaimed just as excitedly as he cuddled his little boy, kissing the top of his head. He then turned his attention back to Frank, and gestured to the small ‘punkin plant’ and its new ‘friend’, the cactus. _Frank’s_ cactus.

“Frankie, this is my son, James,” Gerard said proudly, as he gestured to the little boy whose eyes were glittering as he peered upon his plant. “James, say hello to our neighbor, Frank.”

Frank knelt down next to the little boy, whose wide, hazel eyes matched his father’s perfectly. “Hi, James. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Hi,” James replied, grinning toothily at Frank, who pointed excitedly at the two little plants. “Look Fwank, there’s two! Two plants! There was only one earlier, and now there’s _two_!”

James was so excited about there being a new plant along with the original one, he was literally jumping up and down, though doing so carefully so he didn’t spill the container of water that he held in his hands.

“Can I feed them both, daddy?” The little boy asked, as he looked expectantly at his father, to which Frank’s heart absolutely melted.

“Of course you can, sweetie. I’ll help you, so you don’t spill it,” Gerard replied, kissing his head once more, as he helped James pour some water onto the soil that surrounded either of the plants.

“Thank you, daddy,” James replied, as he flung his small body into his father’s arms. “I’m so happy my punkin has a friend. I was afraid he would get lonely.”

Frank felt his heart absolutely swell with happiness as he watched the interaction between Gerard and his son. When Frank had the idea to plant his cactus next to the plant that Gerard and James had left, he had no idea that it would make such an impact on the two of them. But as Gerard read what the note that hung so proudly off of the cactus to James, and James squealed with excitement, he was more happy than ever that he decided to purchase the little plant to liven up his home when he first moved into the apartment just a few months ago.

“I’m glad your punkin has a friend too, punkin,” Gerard replied to his son, before standing back up next to Frank. James had turned his attention back to the plants, gazing intently at either of them as if he was in awe.

“Sorry,” Gerard murmured to Frank, as a proud smile graced his features. “We were just coming downstairs to water his plant... and, well, now there’s two plants! I’m a little surprised, to be honest. I got home from picking the little man up from school about two hours ago, and the cactus wasn’t there then. I’m glad it is, though, whoever did this made my baby’s day. Which of course, means whoever did this also made my day.”

Frank let out a small laugh, blushing rather deeply as he saw the reaction of the two individuals that were responsible for brightening _his_ mood with this sweet little plant idea in the first place.

“Where did the cactus come from, daddy?”

James’ small voice came from beside them, plucking the two grown-ups from their conversation. As Gerard thought about the answer to this, Frank simply held up one of his hands, which was still covered in remnants of soil from planting the cactus next to James’ pumpkin plant earlier, and gave Gerard a wide grin.

“I guess we’re even,” Frank replied, almost shyly. “You and James made my day, too.”


	2. Decisions, decisions...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You guys are so sweet. Thanks so much for all of the recs!  
> This update is dedicated especially to momiji_neyuki and pixiewayro for their love on the first chapter. <3

Frank couldn’t stop smiling. 

His heart was fluttering as he rinsed the suds out of his hair, massaging his scalp in the process. He washed his body thoroughly, and he was positively tingling from head to toe with excited anticipation about what this evening may bring for his newfound friendship with his neighbor Gerard and his little boy, James. 

After meeting outside and realizing that they had brightened up each other’s day, Gerard had extended an invitation to Frank to join him and James for dinner later on that evening. It took Frank literally no time at all to agree, considering his dinner was probably going to consist of ramen noodles or another frozen pizza for one. A home cooked meal sounded like Heaven... especially if the company he would be in was Gerard’s. 

After their little interlude this morning, Frank was happier than ever that he chose this apartment complex to move in to. Gerard had helped him out tremendously by helping him get his car started, and then meeting him outside of their apartment complex again was even more of a sign that the two of them were meant to be something more; if at the very least, good friends. 

Of course, Frank felt his insides flutter as he thought of just how sexy and downright _gorgeous_ he thought Gerard was, not to mention what a total sweetheart he was. And then on top of that, he had the _cutest_ kid ever. Little James was an exact replica of his father, and seeing them interact only made Frank’s attraction to Gerard grow exponentially. 

He picked up on the little fact that Gerard had shared to him earlier that it was only him and his son that lived in the apartment across from him, meaning he lived there alone and not with a significant other. Did he have a significant other? What happened to James’ mother? 

Considering Gerard has a child that looks identical to him, the chances of him being not only single are one thing, but the chances of Gerard being as gay as Frank is are pretty slim. 

Sighing at this realization, Frank did his best to make himself appear as presentable as possible. He has no idea if Gerard was extending a dinner invitation merely to be polite, or if his intentions went a little bit more deeply than that; either way, Frank didn’t want to get his hopes up. He wasn’t expecting anything other than a nice evening with a potential new good friend of his with his sweet little boy. 

He brushed his teeth and towel dried his hair, not wanting to appear like he was trying too hard and settled for leaving it slightly wet so that it could dry on its own. He then threw on a random Batman t-shirt with a pair of loose fitting jeans, and completed his outfit with a pair of slightly dirty black and white Converse. 

Gerard had told him to be at his apartment for seven, and he had just about a half an hour to kill before needing to cross over to the Y building. He grabbed his keys and descended the stairs; pausing to grin at their makeshift little garden before climbing in his car- which thankfully has been starting without any difficulty thanks to Gerard- and headed down the street to the nearest supermarket.

Gerard had assured Frank earlier that day that he didn’t need to bring anything, but Frank still felt guilty about showing up empty handed. He had no idea what kind of liquor Gerard would like, and opted to get literally one of everything. He picked up a two liter of Coke, a bottle of Whiskey, a six pack of beer, and a bottle of both red wine, and white wine. 

As he disappeared down toward the end of the aisle, his eyes averted to the non-alcoholic sparkling cider or grape juice, that came in the form of a champagne bottle, and he couldn’t help but grin as he realized that James might really appreciate it if he brought something for him, too.

And what if Gerard didn’t drink? 

Shrugging the thought aside, he tossed a bottle of the sparkling, non-alcoholic grape champagne inside of his basket, and proceeded to check out. He had to pass the bakery on his way to the check out line, and he instantly froze in front of the amazing assortment of baked goods. Frank had a massive sweet tooth, and after several minutes of figuring out whether Gerard may prefer chocolate cupcakes or strawberry short cake, he decided on a cheesecake tray; because seriously, who doesn’t like cheesecake? It had a random variety of different flavors, so he figured that this would be his best bet. 

By the time he checked out at the supermarket with his basket full of various liquors and cheesecakes and non-alcoholic champagne, he had ten minutes to spare before he needed to meet Gerard and James for dinner. He lit up a cigarette and allowed AFI’s version of ‘Just Like Heaven’ bless his short ride back to the Sugar Oaks apartment complex. As he pulled into a parking space right outside of the X building, Davey Havok had just finished singing the last note of the song, and Frank had just exhaled the very last of his cigarette. 

Smiling, he grabbed each of the bags carefully from his back seat, and began to make his way up to his apartment. 

“Hey neighbor,” came a voice to Frank’s right. He recognized it immediately and couldn’t help but to grin widely up at Gerard, who was smoking a cigarette of his own on the balcony outside of his apartment. “Do you need any help with that?”

By the time Frank replied with a ‘Hi’ of his own, he couldn’t help but blush at the fact that Gerard had caught him on his way back into his apartment with all of this liquor in tow. Frank didn’t want Gerard to think that he was an alcoholic or anything, so he merely shrugged in reply, but it was no use as Gerard had jogged down the flight of stairs to be on the ground level with Frank. 

“Oh um, well...” Frank began, flashing an embarrassed smile. “You see, I...”

Gerard couldn’t help but grin at the sight before him, as he merely stuck one of his hands out, to let Frank know that he wanted to take some of the bags from Frank’s straining fingers. 

“I can help you bring those up to your apartment, if you’d like,” Gerard offered, flashing him that incredibly sweet smile of his as he took the dessert and the bag that contained the wine and non-alcoholic champagne from Frank’s fingers. 

Frank could feel his cheeks begin to hurt, that’s how wide his smile had become. “Well, I didn’t know what you liked to drink, so I... kinda got a little of everything...” 

“Really?” Gerard blinked rapidly at Frank’s words, as his smile transformed into a full on grin. “Frankie, that’s so fucking sweet of you.” 

They continued to stand there, in the pathway that divided Frank’s apartment building from Gerard’s, grinning at each other as their eyes became locked intently with one another’s. 

“Come on,” Gerard spoke finally, his eyes dancing with excitement as he gestured for Frank to follow him. Frank nodded, feeling his heart skip a beat as Gerard looked at him like that. “Dinner’s ready! I sure hope you’re hungry,” he added, ascending the stairs to the second floor with Frank in tow. 

At that moment, as they reached the top of the stairs to enter Gerard’s apartment, the door flew open, and a tall gentleman stepped out onto the balcony, with James perched happily on his hip. 

“There you are, Gee!” The man exclaimed, flashing a smile featuring a set of perfectly white teeth in Gerard’s direction. He gazed questioningly at Frank, who felt his heart sink just a little bit as he saw the vibrant smile on Gerard’s face that was caused by him witnessing the interaction between this new guy that had just been added to the equation and his little boy, and let out a breathy sigh.

 _“Good thing I bought all of that liquor,”_ Frank thought to himself, as he watched the two men and James interact like a happy family with one another. “ _Looks like I’m gonna need it..._ ”


	3. You've got this silly way of keeping me on the edge of my seat...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gerard gives Frank a proposition he may not be able to refuse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can never apologize enough for my absence on this story. Six months without an update is unforgivable, but I hope this update makes up for it. <3
> 
> Chapter title from my favorite Taking Back Sunday song, "Bike Scene."

Frank stood with a rapidly beating heart on Gerard's balcony, feeling like the wind had just been knocked out of him as he watched Gerard and James interact with the gorgeous man that had just walked through the door.

“Uh Gee, the oven beeped just a second ago. Just thought I’d let you know,” the man (who Frank had yet to be introduced to) said to Gerard, whose eyes immediately grew wide. 

“Shit! I forgot all about the rolls!” Gerard exclaimed, a look of panic overcoming his features as he kindly excused himself and brushed past the tall man in the doorway, leaving Frank alone with him and James. 

“So you’re Frank, I’m assuming?” The man asked, and Frank couldn’t help but to quirk a curious eyebrow at him. 

“Yeah,” Frank grinned kindly at him, as he extended his hand out for the man to take. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Likewise. I’m Mikey,” he grinned back, shaking Frank’s hand. “The little man can’t stop talking about you, we’re actually on our way down so he can show me how rad the dynamic duo of the plant and cactus are. You can go on in if you want. If Gee asks, please tell him we’ll be right back up.” 

Frank nodded, just in time for ‘Gee’ to appear back in the doorway. “Nobody panic, the dinner rolls are fine,” He said with a cheeky grin on his face, his eyes somewhat sparkling as he peered upon Frank. “Come on Frankie, let's go in,” he beckoned him, ushering him into his apartment. 

Frank couldn’t help but beam as Gerard looked at him that way, and let out a small gasp as he took in Gerard’s amazingly decorated apartment. Movie posters hung along the vast majority of the walls, including some of his own favorites, including ‘Pulp Fiction’ and 'The Watchmen'. There was a great amount of some absolutely incredible artwork that adorned the walls as well, which had Frank completely captivated. 

“Wow,” was all Frank could manage to say. 

“I uh, take it you like what you see?” Gerard asked, which struck Frank from his thoughts. 

He turned back to Gerard, and smiled. “Oh yeah.”

They remained with their eyes interlocked with one another, exchanging grins and starry-eyed gazes for the next few more moments, until Frank snapped back to the current situation. 

“I um, these paintings are incredible,” Frank murmured, blushing slightly as he realized he had been making googly eyes at his gorgeous neighbor. 

“Thanks!” Gerard exclaimed, clearly beaming at Frank’s words. “I do a little painting and drawing in my free time, these are just a few ideas that I came up with one day.”

Frank’s eyes widened. “You did these?” 

Gerard nodded, his smile more vibrant than before. “Guilty,” he replied, blushing a little himself this time. 

“You are seriously talented,” Frank breathed out, his eyes glossed over with adoration as he looked upon Gerard’s artwork once again. “These are so gorgeous, I can’t even put in to words how amazing I think you are.” 

Frank froze as he realized what he just admitted out loud. Of course those words were incredibly loaded and he meant them with every fiber of his being, but saying them out loud was something he hadn’t meant to do. 

But before Frank could stammer out an explanation, Gerard leaned in just the slighest bit closer to him, put on the most dazzling smile yet, and said, “I think you’re pretty amazing too, Frankie.”

Frank was so overwhelmed with a number of different emotions at that moment. Gerard was close enough for him to touch, close enough for him to reach out and wrap his arms around, close enough for him to lean in just the slightest bit closer and close the gap between their lips-

But before Frank could figure out if that adorably tempting crooked grin tasted as good as it looked, the front door of the apartment swung open and Mikey burst through the entryway with a giggling James perched on his shoulders, causing the two men to break away from each other. Their moment was officially ruined, but Frank wasn’t at all upset. 

At the very least, the little interruption saved Frank from making an ass of himself, in case he had gotten the complete wrong idea of what Gerard had in mind when he had invited him over. Considering Frank’s feelings for Gerard were increasing by the second, it was going to be quite the challenge to keep those feelings tucked away in the back of his mind. 

He couldn’t help but to grin at the interaction between Gerard, Mikey, and James. They were such a great trio, all smiles and laughs as James was transferred from Mikey’s shoulders and into his father’s arms. 

“Did you show Uncle Mikey your punkin, punkin?” 

Frank felt his heart skip a beat at what Gerard had just said. _Uncle_ Mikey. Mikey was James' _uncle_. 

That means... Mikey is Gerard’s brother. 

His _brother_. 

Not his boyfriend, or his husband, or his significant other, or his partner... Mikey is Gerard’s fucking _brother_. Frank felt his grin threatening to break his face in two at this new development. He absolutely couldn’t believe his luck that this absolutely gorgeous man that is in Gerard’s apartment, playing with his son and here for dinner is only Gerard’s brother, and not a love interest of some sort. 

“Mhm, I sure did, daddy,” James replied to Gerard’s earlier question once his giggling had subsided. He was grinning toothily at his father, before turning his attention to Frank. “I showed Unka Mikey my punkin’s cactus friend, too! The one that Fwankie gave us!” 

All eyes were suddenly on Frank then, who was blushing like a complete idiot at all of the attention he was suddenly getting. 

“Aww, isn’t Frankie the best!?” Gerard asked, attacking James’ cheek with an onslaught of kisses. 

“Yeah! Fwankie’s the best!” James exclaimed, giggling excitedly as Frank blushed furiously. 

“I mean, I’m not really-” Frank began to say, until Gerard leaned in and pressed a cute, lingering kiss to the corner of Frank’s mouth. 

“Of course you are,” Gerard replied with that adorably crooked grin, blushing slightly. “Now let’s eat.”

Frank could do nothing but follow behind him with a rapidly beating heart, and a lovesick grin plastered on his face. 

* * *

“Hmmm...” 

James had a thoughtful look on his face, with one hand perched under his chin. 

“If I had to pick a fav’rite... I’d have to say...” 

Gerard, Mikey, and Frank were all eagerly awaiting the answer to the question Frank had just asked him, which of course, was the million dollar question: “Who is your favorite superhero?”

“Batman,” was James’ reply. Frank couldn’t help but notice that Gerard was beaming with pride from his spot next to him. 

“Oh yeah? Why Batman?” Frank asked, suddenly curious as to why Gerard reacted the way that he did. 

“Because Batman is best pals with Robin, and they are a awesome team, like me and daddy,” James replied, reaching to give his father a high five. “And I’m Robin, and daddy’s Batman. Right daddy?”

“Right, pal,” Gerard grinned at his son, returning his high five. 

“And I’m _the Joker_ ,” Mikey chimed in, using his best villain voice as he reached over and attacked his nephew with an onslaught of tickles. 

As James erupted into a fit of giggles, Gerard peered over at Frank, who felt a volt of electricity run straight through him as Gerard grinned at him like that. 

“Come with me,” Gerard suggested, reaching a hand out for Frank to take. He slipped his hand within Gerard’s, eagerly, and felt yet another jolt of electricity as their fingers interlocked. 

He led Frank outside on to the balcony, and gave a sigh of relief once they were all alone. “I’m so glad you’re here, Frankie,” Gerard said, his voice small as he reached into his pocket to retrieve his pack of cigarettes. He took one out for himself, before offering the pack to Frank, who graciously accepted it. 

“I’m glad I’m here too, Gerard,” Frank smiled back. The two stood outside in a peaceful silence, enjoying their cigarettes and the moonlight. “Dinner was fucking awesome, thank you so much for having me over.”

Gerard beamed once again, grinning widely at his neighbor. “You’re welcome over anytime,” he replied, before taking a deep breath. He was seemingly deep in thought as he exhaled a cloud of smoke, before reaching out to take Frank’s hand in his once again. 

“Actually, I have sort of a confession...” 

Frank felt the breath hitch in his lungs as Gerard spoke those words. “Oh yeah?” 

Gerard nodded. “You see, I sort of invited Mikey over tonight for a reason,” he replied, grinning shyly as he admitted those words. 

Frank nodded, giving Gerard all of his undivided attention. 

“I um... fuck,” Gerard began, rolling his eyes as he ran a hand through his hair. Frank damn near salivated at the sight of Gerard in front of him, with the cigarette stuck between his lips. He was the perfect combination of adorable and sexy, awkward and shy, all at the same time. “I’m really fucking terrible at this, so you have to forgive me,” he continued, blushing slightly. 

The moonlight filtered in on their little balcony excursion, illuminating Gerard’s face just perfectly. In that moment, Frank didn’t know what came over him. He didn’t have time to think about his actions, he had to do this now, before he lost his nerve. 

Gerard’s shy little crooked grin gave him all of the encouragement that he needed. Frank placed a hand on the side of Gerard’s face, before leaning in to place a very tender kiss to his lips. It lasted no more than five seconds, but it felt like forever as Gerard’s lips moved tenderly upon his own for those few magical moments. 

Frank was the first to break the kiss, leaving Gerard breathless and starry-eyed. 

“You’re much better at this than you think you are,” Frank replied, grinning shyly as Gerard connected their lips again, aching to feel that contact once again. 

“Thanks,” Gerard murmured, sighing against Frank’s lips. “It’s just, I’ve got James, and I have to be really careful about who I bring around him. I don’t date much because of that little fact, I’m terrified of what bringing someone into our little world could do to us...”

Frank took those words to heart, and leaned forward to kiss Gerard again, more deeply this time. 

“You don’t have to explain any more,” Frank supplied, holding Gerard closely to him. 

“I invited Mikey over for a reason tonight, to keep an eye on James so you and I could have some time to ourselves,” Gerard admitted, leaning his forehead against Frank’s. “I know we just met but... something about you...” 

He pulled Frank in even closer, and kissed him more fervently this time. A needy moan from Gerard encouraged Frank to lick Gerard’s lips, who instantly allowed him all of the access into his mouth that he so pleased. Gerard’s tongue met Frank’s greedily, tasting his mouth and loving every moment of this amazing moment with his gorgeous neighbor. 

“Thought about you all fucking day,” Gerard broke the kiss momentarily, his voice thick with desire as his tongue sought out Frank’s mouth once again. 

“Hoped so much that you’d want me too, Frankie. Want you so much-”

“-I want you, too,” Frank cut in, his heart soaring upon hearing those words that he had been aching to hear. “God, Gerard, I want you so fucking bad,” he grinned, relaxing his forehead against Gerard’s once again as either man struggled to regulate their breathing. 

“I was hoping you’d say that,” Gerard replied, sighing deeply as he pulled slightly away from the other man. “So having said that, I have a proposition for you.”

Frank quirked an eyebrow. “Anything,” he replied, grinning softly at the man who had been on his mind all day. 

“We’ve got at least another hour or so before it’s time for James to go to bed. Mikey’s staying the night to watch him, so I’m thinking, we can hang out here for a bit, then once the little man is knocked out, we can go somewhere just me and you,” Gerard suggested, eyeing Frank eagerly. “What do you think?”

Frank didn’t even need to think about a response.

“I think that sounds like an excellent plan,” Frank replied, before leaning forward to press an absolutely adoring kiss to Gerard’s lips. 

As Gerard kissed him back, with equal tenderness, Frank realized that he had never been more grateful for having car troubles, or rough days at work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won't lie to you guys, I completely lost my inspiration for Frerard a few months ago. I stumbled upon a new OTP, a new fandom to be a part of (The Walking Dead fandom is so amazing, ugh it's so perfect I can't even begin to explain). I think I gravitated and transitioned so easily into that fandom because I miss My Chemical Romance so much, and writing these guys was just so fucking hard to do. But today, I randomly thought of this story, and realized how much I missed writing it, so here you are! 
> 
> Hopefully you guys will welcome me back to the Frerard kingdom, my original home, and I can somehow manage to slip right back into the groove of writing Frank and Gerard goodness for you. I sure have missed this place, did you miss me too? <3


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